According to a VG 24/7 report, Sony began shipping development kits of its upcoming game console, PlayStation 4, codenamed "Orbis" to developers. The kit is described as being a "normal sized PC," driven by AMD A10 "Trinity" APU, and 8 or 16 GB of memory. We've known from reports dating back to April that Sony plans to use a combination of APU and discrete GPU, similar to today's Dual Graphics setups, where the APU graphics core works in tandem with discrete mid-range GPU. The design goal is to be able to play games 1920 x 1080 pixels resolution, with 60 Hz refresh rate, and with the ability to run stereo 3D at 60 Hz. For storage, the system has a combination of Blu-ray drive and 250 GB HDD. Sony's next-generation game console is expected to be unveiled "just before E3," 2013.

I wonder, will they do a discrete custom AMD GPU which will make it impossible to run the games on a normal PC with similar hardware (or emulate realtime/with good speed)?
Or if the hardware is really "nothing else" but a amd64 based PC, what's could be the business strategy here? Are they going to team up with Valve/Steam against MS or something?

by: BigMack70I find it hard to believe that they're claiming 1080p 60fps possible on an APU based system.

I call BS. More probably 720p upscaled

by: Dos101APU system with discrete graphics. Depending on the what the dedicated GPU is it's very doable.

You guys forget that with consoles developers are able to get 100% usage out of the hardware it has because developers only have to code for one configuration so they are able to utilize the hardware 100% with 100% efficiency. They are able to push hardware in the consoles a bit differently then on a normal desktop PC.

I decided against an A10+6670 for my wife's new system because getting acceptable 1920x1200 performance meant lowering the quality down to low-medium settings. But in a controlled console environment with tight stacks, it shouldn't be a problem to bump up the eye candy.

by: MxPhenom 216You guys forget that with consoles developers are able to get 100% usage out of the hardware it has because developers only have to code for one configuration so they are able to utilize the hardware 100% with 100% efficiency. They are able to push hardware in the consoles a bit differently then on a normal desktop PC.

I don't forget that developers can get more out of console hardware than the same stuff in a PC. But...

... 60fps 1080p is actually very demanding. You're not going to get 60fps minimum framerates in even all current titles without a multi-GPU setup. If you want 60fps minimum framerate in BF3, for example, you are either going to be using multiple GPUs or turning settings down.

So, unless they've got some GPU secret sauce in there that they're not announcing, even given the fact that they can get more out of console hardware than PC, I find it extremely unlikely that they're going to be churning out 1080p 60fps in anything demanding.

Next gen consoles are supposed to be the playground for Unreal Engine 4, and if you think that's going to run at 1080p 60fps on anything less than a high end graphics card, you're crazy. How high end, I don't know, but definitely something many tiers above an APU.

I do believe the AMD execs eyes are $.$
If the new Xbox follows the APU with discrete graphics route, they'll certainly be cashing in, making the big monies. Glad to see their success with their architecture, maybe when they port the games to pc they might work and look a little better, for AMD systems of course. Sleeping Dogs will love this xD

by: BigMack70I find it hard to believe that they're claiming 1080p 60fps possible on an APU based system.

I call BS. More probably 720p upscaled

Well, i don't see it that far fetched. Remember, games for PC's are generic as every config is different. For PS4, even if they'll use only AMD Fusion APU, it will be highly optimized and coded specifically for that. And that will make MASSIVE difference. Just remember how much faster were games using just dedicatwed libraries like 3dfx Glide or S3 Metal. I still remember playing UT99 using S3 Savage 3D with S3 Metal better than it was running through Direct3D on RivaTNT2. ANd with S3TC high res textures. Now imagine a whole game build specifically for that platform.

It's the same reason why Gran Turismo 5 looked so damn good on a hardware that was speced as GeForce 7900...

by: 1Kurgan1And thats based on what? I'm not saying PS's didn't break, but they sure weren't on the level of the "red ring of death". Just seems like fanboying.

I didn't say anything about playstations breaking, I was referring to the ability to port PS3 games to the PS4. Since PS3 uses Cell for it's CPU and uses an NVidia GPU, I'm sure there might be difficulties in retaining backwards compatibility with PS3 titles.

by: RejZoRWell, i don't see it that far fetched. Remember, games for PC's are generic as every config is different. For PS4, even if they'll use only AMD Fusion APU, it will be highly optimized and coded specifically for that. And that will make MASSIVE difference. Just remember how much faster were games using just dedicatwed libraries like 3dfx Glide or S3 Metal. I still remember playing UT99 using S3 Savage 3D with S3 Metal better than it was running through Direct3D on RivaTNT2. ANd with S3TC high res textures. Now imagine a whole game build specifically for that platform.

It's the same reason why Gran Turismo 5 looked so damn good on a hardware that was speced as GeForce 7900...

So you think that they're going to be able to do on current and future titles, with a highly optimized and well coded APU, what a 7970/680 can not do even on all current titles?

Now, if they have an APU + some sort of midrange GPU in there, I'd find it more plausible, but I just have a hard time buying that they're going to be rendering things at a smooth 60fps at full 1080p when all the rumors about the hardware are that it's on the low-end side of things.

by: MxPhenom 216You guys forget that with consoles developers are able to get 100% usage out of the hardware it has because developers only have to code for one configuration so they are able to utilize the hardware 100% with 100% efficiency. They are able to push hardware in the consoles a bit differently then on a normal desktop PC.

You are right on both accounts. 384 VLIW4 SMIDS is a hell of alot more power then the what 16 threads on a dx9 GPU with an outdated architecture. I've seen a 3870k (overclocked) do 720p gaming easy, whose to say 1080p without crappy Direct X isn't possible. Most console gamer's are 20-26 collage students, who come home get drunk, and play video games. Hey concept if your drunk hell 480p looks good :roll:

This is good news for AMD,
Also explains what I heard about them being substantially cheaper like $250~$299 instead of $500+ Using standard x86 parts would help with costs, The bad news is there still wont be any games.

I decided against an A10+6670 for my wife's new system because getting acceptable 1920x1200 performance meant lowering the quality down to low-medium settings. But in a controlled console environment with tight stacks, it shouldn't be a problem to bump up the eye candy.

Not to mention most console gamers rave about how "awesome" console graphics are when they are getting 720p upscaled and low detail settings. If this new console can do 1080p native with mediumish settings console gamers will shit over how "great" the graphics are.